Homestead Gains From Dispute

HOT SPRINGS — A Washington-based trade organization has shifted two May conferences to this mountain resort in the Alleghany Highlands.

A nearby tavern is hosting sold-out dinner parties, and alcohol sales are soaring.

A West Virginia company that rents furnishings and equipment and arranges flowers for special events did the majority of its work at The Homestead resort this month.

Signs are everywhere that The Homestead is unintentionally benefiting from a messy dispute over labor conditions at The Greenbrier, a West Virginia resort about 40 miles away. At the same time, some businesses that rely on The Greenbrier's visitors to drive sales are turning to The Homestead's clientele until the dispute is resolved.

The Greenbrier's problems began in late January, when nine labor contracts and one master agreement among the resort's union employees expired. They're still working out a contract.

Also in January, union employees, who make up two-thirds of The Greenbrier's work force, passed an authorization to strike. That means they could walk out anytime.

That threat has been enough to force many companies that have booked two- to five-day stays at The Greenbrier to cut and run. They're seeking alternative venues for their large-scale meetings, causing The Greenbrier to lose more than $12 million in revenue so far, Greenbrier County Commissioner Lowell Rose said.

In the past several months, some companies have turned to The Homestead, which is about 70 miles north of the Roanoke Valley, because its proximity to The Greenbrier does not significantly disrupt travel arrangements.

Homestead officials would not comment on an apparent surge in business, but it's evident that The Greenbrier's fall has been The Homestead's gain.

Sales for Bath County's accommodation category, which includes The Homestead, rose more than 35 percent during the first quarter of this year, compared with 2007, based on data from the Virginia Department of Taxation. Sales were $10.8 million, compared with $7.9 million in 2007.

Though it's unclear whether this increase is a result of more visitors switching from The Greenbrier, The Homestead's sales generally make up more than half of the county's total, said Melinda Nichols, director of the Bath County Chamber of Commerce. The Homestead would not comment on the reason for the sales uptick.

Shifting a total of 800 people to The Homestead twice this month wasn't an easy task for the Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers. But it was necessary, the council said. One of The Greenbrier's longtime corporate customers, the Washington, D.C.-based group booked two May meetings at The Greenbrier, where room rates start at $379. After the council's president, Ken Crerar, learned of the resort's labor dispute, he moved the meetings.

"No professional person in their right mind would take a large group of people to a hotel and chance having a labor walkout," Crerar said. "We're sort of caught in the middle."

For members of the council, coming to The Greenbrier at least twice a year is a tradition. They have traveled there since the early 1900s, choosing the 721-room resort for its service, isolation and few distractions, Crerar said. The Greenbrier, which has a spa, three golf courses and tennis courts, was founded in 1778 in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va.

The resort is also a primary economic engine for Greenbrier County, providing 1,600 jobs during the peak season. Each year, the resort generates an average of $600,000 to $700,000 in tax revenue for the Greenbrier County Convention and Visitors Bureau. The bureau expects April revenue to be down as a result of the labor unrest, Executive Director Kara Dense said.

For now, nearby businesses are riding on a hope that The Greenbrier dispute eventually will be resolved.